Dammit! Just checked on the net. Indeed they are. I asked the guy at the LFS for ottos. Ah well. Will see how it turns out.
Take it back. if your's is a good LFS, they should at least let you exchange it. I had one once; evil bugger, killed 3 fish before I got rid of him. BTW, how exactly did you think these were ottos
Dude, ive never seen or had an oto before. Only seen pics. The body shape looked pretty much the same to me and didnt want to question the professional at the shop. I'll keep them till i can get real ottos.
Gee this looks great. Really great. I didn't read the entire thread so excuse the silly question, but what substrate is that? It looks super good
Tnx guys. @AdrianT its a DIY substrate. Vermiculite and potash and dolomite and red clay. Topped with sandblasting sand.
What exactly is your sandblasting "sand"? Be careful as it's often slag which will cause you all sorts of issues...
Probably some sort of silica - very tough with sharp edges, not good for corys and loaches at the bottom though...
It's normally not silica nowadays due to the amount of dust that is created when using it which wrecks your lungs. The black "sand" you mostly see will be some sort of blast furnace slag which as I said can cause fauna and flora issues depending on what it's from.